Directions Newsletter Vol. I No. 7
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In this issue:
Solidarity is a term used frequently in the labour movement – together, working people are stronger than we would be as individuals. That’s the whole idea behind forming a union in the first place. We extend that concept beyond our own workplaces to UFCW Canada as a whole, and to workers throughout Canada, whether unionized now or waiting for the opportunity to become union members. Further still, we stand in solidarity with our sisters and brothers around the world, because the quest for corporate domination is truly global in scale. Recently, UFCW Canada national representative Dorothy Gossi represented Canada and the Canadian Labour Congress at the fourth national congress of Força Sindical, Brazil’s largest labour central. More than 6,000 delegates representing over 1,500 unions gathered in Praia Grande, São Paolo, Brazil’s industrial centre. What Sister Gossi brought back was a sense of the vibrancy and optimism of the labour movement in Brazil, despite the anti-worker nature of the country’s economic structure and the pressures of globalization (see Facts on File, below). At the same time that enlightened trade unionists in Brazil try to bring working and social conditions out of the dark ages, they are facing the new threat of hemispheric free trade agreements that could further damage a precarious economic balance. Just as no person is an island, isolated from participation in the world around them, no union is an island, either. It remains incumbent on UFCW Canada and all trade unionists to continue to participate internationally, to help others when a stand needs to be taken.
In solidarity, Coca-Cola: Weston walks while Hamilton ratifies Coca-Cola’s largest canned drink facility in Canada is out of production while management and scabs slowly remove product, after 100 UFCW Canada Local 393W members struck the Weston ON (north Toronto) plant on July 17. They are seeking improved job security as well as improvements in wages, benefits, and working conditions. Meanwhile, 105 members of UFCW Canada Local 175 who work at the Coke distribution centre in Hamilton ON have ratified a new agreement with improvements to wages, benefits, and job security provisions, and pension contribution improvements that will bring the benefit to $60.00 per month per year of service. More: (Weston) David W. Watts, UFCW Canada national office; (Hamilton) Jim Hastings, UFCW Canada Local 175 Two supermarkets in Québec have begun strikes. On July 13, 90 members of UFCW Canada Local 503 at a Maxi store in Rimouski walked off the job over evening and weekend shift allocations, bargaining unit work performed by suppliers, use of counter-ready meats, and wages. On July 17, another 30 members of the local struck an IGA store in St-Apollinaire, just southwest of the capital. They are seeking wage improvements, increased full-time, and the right to choose vacation time without undue management intervention. UFCW Canada Local 832 members began a strike on July 16 against Henderson Wholesale Building Materials, a U.S.-owned operation that wants to move them to another subsidiary plant in Winnipeg, Wilmar Windows. The eight members are fighting employer demands for major concessions. More: Murielle Desjardins, UFCW Canada Local 503; Don Keith, UFCW Canada Local 832, www.ufcw832.com The 36 members of UFCW Canada Local 1400 at the Saskatchewan Science Centre in Regina have approved a new three-year agreement, with 3% wage increases in each year, retroactive to January 2001. In addition to some job reclassifications due to changes in the work, the scope of the bargaining unit was expanded by three previously-management positions. Improvements were made to vacations, parental and bereavement leaves, and the workweek for the “Science Explorer” position was reduced from 8-hours per day and 40-hours per week to 7.5 and 37.5, respectively. More: Don Logan, UFCW Canada Local 1400 UFCW Canada Local 1518 members in late June ratified a 42-month agreement at Olivieri Foods in Vancouver, with a 40-cent wage increase retroactive to August 2000, including overtime and stat holiday rates. Wages increase a total of $1.50 over the life of the agreement, and improvements were also made to vacations, language, and off-shift premiums (now 56-cents per hour). More: Tom Fawkes, Andy Neufeld, UFCW Canada Local 1518, www.ufcw1518.com More telemarketers join UFCW Canada On July 11-12, some 400 call centre workers at Faneuil ISG in Winnipeg voted to join UFCW Canada Local 832. A proposals meeting will be held shortly to let the new members set priorities for first contract negotiations. Local 832 already represents 300 telemarketing workers at Telespectrum and 100 at Integrated Messaging. The local is striving to overcome the industry’s reputation for high worker turnover by enabling workers to enjoy long-term careers in jobs that provide good pay and benefits. More: Don Keith, UFCW Canada Local 832, www.ufcw832.com Close to 500 Inner-Tec security workers in Winnipeg avoided a strike with an eleventh-hour contract. The two-year agreement, retroactive to July 1, brings immediate increases of 35-to-60-cents per hour. Further increases in July next year will raise wages by as much as 19% overall. Rates are now also tied to minimum wage, with wages increasing automatically to maintain their distance above minimum. More: Don Keith, UFCW Canada Local 832, www.ufcw832.com Dominion Tanners members win fight against concessions After a three-and-a-half month lockout, more than 200 UFCW Canada Local 832 members have won their battle against employer rollback demands, ratifying a new agreement on July 6. Instead of the employer’s originally-proposed 10% wage cut, they won a 10% increase over the three-year agreement, with the first increase retroactive to October 2000. Overtime pay is guaranteed after eight hours a day or 40 hours per week, and workers temporarily assigned to work in lower classifications will continue to receive their normal rate of pay. The lockout period will be considered time worked for the purposes of calculating bonuses and vacation entitlement. More: Don Keith, UFCW Canada Local 832, www.ufcw832.com The following change to the UFCW Canada national staff has been announced since the last report: Hired: David Smith, national representative, Banff AB (effective July 22) Facts on File: Força Sindical / Brazil
Sources: Força Sindical, ICFTU, World Bank
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